


The Social Experiment

by BrokenHearted1984



Category: Star Wars - All Media Types
Genre: Flirting, Fluff, Multi, Romance, Romantic Comedy, Social Experiments
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-09-27
Updated: 2020-09-27
Packaged: 2021-03-07 23:21:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,691
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26675824
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BrokenHearted1984/pseuds/BrokenHearted1984
Summary: Inspired by an actual social dating experiment posted on youtube.Rey helps Finn with a social dating experiment for his popular youtube channel. She has fun with it, feeding random guys with the cheesiest pick-up lines to prove a point.It all goes awry when Finn begs Rey to flirt with Kylo Ren, New York City's ruthless villain.
Relationships: Rey/Ben Solo | Kylo Ren
Comments: 4
Kudos: 20





	The Social Experiment

**Author's Note:**

> Hey all, 
> 
> I was watching this youtube video of a social dating experiment, which is pretty funny. The link to the video will be posted below. 
> 
> I found myself imagining Rey in this situation and how Kylo/Ben would respond to it. Thus, the story was born. I would love to hear what you think! Thanks for reading.

Clear, blue eyes blinked down at her. The man was clearly confused by what Rey had just said. “Excuse me?”

Rey beamed at the tall, blond man in front of her. He nervously shifted his weight to his right foot. “I seemed to have lost my number. May I have yours?”

The man’s face became crimson and he let out a nervous chuckle. “Sure.”

He typed his number into Rey’s cheap cell phone and watched her expectantly. Rey’s smile stretched even more across her face. “Dandy, thank you!”

The man blinked again and awkwardly shuffled away, looking back at her once more before turning away and picking up his pace.

Rey turned away from him and gave a thumbs up in the distance, shooting a brilliant smile at Finn. He had been standing several feet away with his camera, recording the entire incident.

He grinned at Rey and returned her thumbs up. Rey never imagined she’d be doing a social experiment like this, especially not for thousands of people to watch.

But Finn was her best friend and he had a very popular youtube channel- one that needed frequent updates. The dating social experiments were mostly what kept his followers returning to his channel.

The idea was simple: Confidence in dating is key. A woman shouldn’t have to always let a man make the first move or do all the pursuing. All Rey had to do was walk up to any man and use a pick-up line on him. Most of the time, the pick up lines worked, proving that confidence is key. And when interviewed, most of the men said they found it refreshing to have women asking for their digits.

They chose Central Park as the place to do the experiment- a place with plenty of people. Rey ran her hand through her hair, something she was unaccustomed to, since she normally had it up in a ponytail or a bun. It fell past her shoulders in subtle waves, thanks to Rose and her curling wand.

_‘Just make sure you run your hand through it every now and then to give it an extra ‘umph’’_ Rose had instructed.

Her eyes roamed over the people in the park. Some were seated on blankets, eating their lunch and conversing with one another. Others jogged by, while others walked at a leisurely pace with their dogs. It was a beautiful, warm day in August- the perfect day to do a social experiment.

Rey zeroed in on her next target- a man with chocolate hair, who was currently jogging towards her. He barely made eye contact with her before she started jogging next to him. His pace was a little hard to keep up with and she started losing her breath a little. Those pilates classes she took three times a week did nothing for her running abilities.

The man looked at her out of the corner of his eye, looking slightly disturbed. “May I help you?” He didn’t even sound out of breath.

Her lungs were starting to burn a little. “Could you stop for a second?”

The request made him pick up his pace a little. “I’m training for a marathon.”

“Ok,” Rey breathed. “I…was just…wondering if I could follow you to where you’re going because my parents… told me to follow my dreams,” she huffed, practically wheezing.

The man paused and turned to face her, jogging in place. His eyes glinted playfully as he watched her fight to catch her breath.

Rey flashed him a brilliant smile while she panted, ignoring the fact that she mentioned parents in the pick-up line. Oh well, none of this was real anyway.

The man grinned at her, still jogging in place. The jogging in place was starting to weird her out. “I have a girlfriend….. but I might be able to get drinks tonight,” he suggested, his eyes grazing over her body.

Her cheerful mood was gone and she frowned, her gaze turning icy. “Keep jogging, creep,” she darkly snapped, stomping in Finn’s direction.

Finn’s face was red as he roared with laughter, recording her as she shot him an annoyed glare. She snatched up her water bottle and took a generous drink from it.

“The things I do for you,” she muttered, planting herself on the ground.

Finn turned his video camera off and took a seat next to her, wiping tears from his eyes as his laughter died down.

“That was priceless peanut,” he chortled, wrapping an arm around her shoulders.

Rey shrugged his arm off and playfully punched his shoulder. “That part better not be in your video,” she warned, taking another drink of water.

Finn sighed, smiling. “Thanks for your help, Rey. I don’t know what I would have done without you.”

Rey gently nudged his shoulder with hers. “Any time. But I’m sure Rose would have helped had I not been able to.”

Finn frowned. “I don’t like the idea of watching her flirt with other guys, even for a social experiment.”

Rey smiled to herself. Finn has liked Rose since middle school…. But he’s never admitted it out loud.

“How ironic,” Rey wondered out loud, glancing at her best friend.

He raised a brow. “What?”

Rey smiled at him. “How you, the dating guru of youtube, can’t bring yourself to ask out the girl you’ve been in love with since you were twelve.”

Finn’s face turned a deep shade of red and he cleared his throat, quickly looking away. “I uh-“ his words caught in his throat.

Rey raised an expectant brow at him, noting that he was staring straight ahead, shocked. Finn started blindly tapping at her, never removing his eyes from whatever he was looking at.

“What?” Rey grouched, annoyed with his frantic taps on her arm.

Finn couldn’t bring himself to speak, so he just pointed straight ahead. “Him,” he finally said.

Rey followed his gaze to the towering dark haired man walking down the path in front of them, harshly speaking into his cell phone. Her heart skipped a beat as she drank him in- his broad shoulders, his impeccable black suit, the confident, no nonsense way he was walking.

“Rey,” Finn’s voice broke her out of her trance.

“Huh?” Rey said, reluctantly tearing her gaze away from the man.

Finn’s eyes were pleading as he turned his camera on again. “Do you know who that is??”

Rey looked at the man again. He was getting further away. _Gorgeous_ , Rey wanted to say.

“No… am I supposed to?” she replied, looking at her foster brother.

Finn gently pushed her forward. “You need to do the experiment with him!”

Rey gaped at him as if he asked her to jump off the tallest skyscraper in New York City. “ _Him_? Finn, no.”

“Rey, _please_. Trust me, this is perfect,” Finn pled, watching as the man walked further away from them, completely unaware they were even watching him.

Rey took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She’d been confident throughout this entire experiment, choosing attractive men and laying pick-up lines on them. She didn’t care whether they rejected her or not.

But this man- the thought of him even looking at her made her want to shrink. This man was different. Intimidating. Beautiful.

She quickly took out the tube of light pink gloss Rose had given her and put a small amount on before getting to her feet. Rey could hear Finn following behind her as she lightly jogged back onto the path to catch up with the dark haired man. 

The man’s back looked broad, powerful in his suit jacket. She quietly walked behind him, quickly thinking of a pick-up line to use. The one that came to her mind made her heart lurch in her chest. She hadn't used it yet. Taking a deep breath, she shook her head and quickened her pace. Here goes nothing. 

“…not on my desk by morning, I will have you fired and not a soul in New York City will hire you. I will make sure of it.” Rey caught on to the last part of his conversation on the phone and she almost turned around and left, intimidated by his hostility. Her heart went out to the person on the receiving end of that threat.

The man shoved his cell phone into his pocket and picked up his pace a little. This was her only chance.

Rey found herself surging forward until she was walking right next to him. “Excuse me,” she said in an embarrassingly squeaky voice.

“ _What_!” he snapped, turning to face her. His hardened gaze softened just a fraction when it landed on her face. He wasn’t conventionally handsome- his nose was a little too big and his face was kind of narrow. But the intensity in his dark eyes made her belly flop and her attention was drawn to his full lips.

Rey snapped out of it and gave him the sunniest smile she could muster, amidst her terror. “Are you- are you a vegetable?” It annoyed her how soft and unsure her voice sounded as she asked the question.

The intimidating man's brows furrowed and his dark eyes narrowed as he leaned forward, as if he didn’t believe what he had heard. “Come again?”

She wanted the ground to open and swallow her whole. Rey swallowed hard, fighting to calm her erratically racing heart. “Are you a vegetable?” She clearly and loudly repeated, proud of how strong she sounded this time. Rey most certainly did not feel strong in this moment.

The man towered over her and his chocolate eyes briefly roamed over her face before he looked around, searching for something or someone. Rey’s eyes nervously flickered to Finn, who was standing a distance away. He had his camera expertly hidden, but still trained on them. Finn shot her a concerned look and nodded at her in encouragement.

The man’s gaze returned to Rey and she flashed him her pearly whites. He rolled his eyes and sighed impatiently, as if he wanted to get the conversation over with. “No, I’m not a _vegetable,_ ” he sneered.

She found herself boldly stepping closer to him, lowering her voice conspiratorially. His eyes widened a bit and then his gaze darkened as he watched her, guarded. 

“Well, if you were a vegetable, you’d be a _cute-cumber_.” Rey even threw in a cheesy wink and immediately felt her face heating with embarrassment.

What was wrong with her? She’d done this several times and never felt embarrassed about anything. She nervously ran her hand through her hair, hoping it didn’t look flat. Since when did she care about her stupid hair looking flat??

The man practically gaped at her, his eyes shining with surprise and subtle humor. His lips quirked, almost as if he was forcing himself not to smile. “Very funny. Am I being punked right now?”

He looked around again and Finn stepped back, out of sight.

Rey solemnly shook her head. “No, Sir. I meant every word- if you were a vegetable, you’d be a cute-cumber.” She had no idea where she was getting her confidence from at this point.

His gaze hardened again as he stared at her. “Did my mother put you up to this? Has she resorted to having people stalk me just to get me to bring someone home?”

Rey frowned as if she were offended. “Certainly not! I’m a woman with one mission.”

The man sighed impatiently, running a hand through his thick black hair. She found herself admiring how soft it looked and how it slightly curled at the ends. “Alright, get it over with. What charity are you running?” his harsh voice broke her reverie.

Rey raised a brow, confused. “Excuse me?”

He folded his arms, his eyes gleaming with triumph as if he’d caught her red-handed. Rey certainly did not notice how large his biceps looked as he folded his arms. “How much money are you asking for me to donate?”

Her playfulness instantly fizzled out. “You think I want money?”

The man rolled his eyes. “That’s what you all want, isn’t it? I get several of you people sucking up to me just to get me to donate to your precious causes.”

Rey grit her teeth and set him straight with the iciest glare she could muster. “No, you giant _idiot_ , I just wanted your number. But I certainly don’t want it anymore.”

She turned away from him and stormed off, ignoring the way the man’s eyes had widened a fraction at her declaration.

_Cocky buffoon,_ Rey thought to herself, clenching her hands into fists. Who did he think he was? Accusing her of wanting money from _him_. She didn’t need anyone’s money, thank you very much. She worked hard to make her own living and was damn proud of it. Rey depended on no one.

“Wait!” The deep voice behind her made her stop.

She slowly turned to face the man she had called a giant idiot. He drunk her in this time, taking his time to study her face, her hair. Rey found herself blushing under his intense gaze. He looked curious, as if she were a puzzle he couldn’t figure out.

The man dug in his pocket and pulled out his phone, handing it to her. Rey stared at it like an idiot.

“Uh,” she dumbly uttered, confused. Her eyes locked with his and she raised a brow.  
  


“Put your number in,” the man instructed, his eyes slightly playful. “I’ll call you.”

The fight completely drained from her veins. Rey numbly found herself putting her number into his phone and silently handed it back to him. This wasn’t how it was supposed to go- the guy was supposed to put his number into her phone and then she’d never call them. It was just an experiment. But then again, this “experiment” was not going how it should with this man.

“Rey,” the man softly repeated, reading her contact info from his phone. His dark eyes met hers again and his lips quirked into a subtle, crooked smile. “You’ll be hearing from me soon, Rey.”

And just like nothing, he turned and walked away, leaving her to gape at his back. She heard Finn walk up next to her.

“So Rey….” Finn said distantly. “What just happened?”

Rey was still watching the man, even though he was far away now. “I have no idea.”

And then she remembered that he never told her his name. Did he expect her to somehow know it?

Rey turned to Finn. “Who is he?”

Finn gave her a grim smile. “That was Kylo Ren… not only is he Senator Organa’s son, but he’s the CEO of Enterprise Capital and ruthless beast of New York City. He’s vicious and I can’t believe you’ve never heard of him. Everyone knows who Kylo Ren is and how cruel he is,” he explained.

Rey chewed over the information, still shocked at what had transpired. “Huh,” she blankly stated, remembering Kylo’s dark gaze roaming over her face. As if he were trying to figure out a difficult riddle. She tingled at the memory of his crooked smile, at the way his brows furrowed over his whiskey brown eyes-

“And you just gave him your number,” Finn added, breaking her train of thought.

Rey blinked and turned to him, suddenly grouchy. “Well you’re the one who pushed me to flirt with him!”

“It was for the experiment! I thought he’d reject you viciously. I intended to make fun of him with the footage,” Finn replied. “I didn’t expect him to flirt with you in return. The man apparently has no remorse.”

Rey took a deep breath. “Well, I doubt he’ll even call.” Why did she feel disappointed with that admission?

Finn shrugged. “Consider yourself lucky if he doesn’t. But Rey, I think he will.”

Rey shot him an annoyed look. “Oh, shut it. Why on Earth would he do that? He gave me the classic 'I'll call you' line.”

Finn smiled and shook his head, as if the answer were obvious. “You didn’t see the way he looked at you.”

**Author's Note:**

> Link to the video that inspired this story: 
> 
> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LapSvFIo9EY&t=47s
> 
> Let me know if it doesn't work.


End file.
